To Eat or Not to Eat?!
 

Exercise calories, that is...

Hey everyone! I'm new to this forum, but not calorie counting. I started counting calories and keeping a food journal in the beginning of March and have successfully lost 20 lbs since then. I follow a 1200 calorie diet, with a splurge day here and there (maybe once every couple of weeks).

I also workout an average of 5x a week for 70 minutes of cardio (running on the treadmill and using the elliptical). I usually burn about 800 calories at the gym.

I'm trying to lose the last 10 lbs and it's going slow... Here's my question:
Do I need to eat the calories I burn at the gym? If so, how many?? I feel pretty satisfied with 1200 calories (I eat a pretty "clean" diet of whole foods, so I don't feel deprived), but I don't want to slow my metabolism or hurt my weight loss efforts by not eating enough. It feels so counter-productive to eat MORE calories in order to lose weight, but I want to do whatever will give me the fastest results. I keep reading different answers on the internet... some say that you should eat ALL of the calories you burn, some say to eat a portion, and some say not to eat them if you want the best results... It's so confusing! :?:

I was really hoping to lose 6 more lbs by my 4th of July beach vacation, but I'm starting to worry that it won't happen.

You'll never know exactly how many calories you burn at the gym, so that is the reason I don't eat mine back. I see burning calories through exercise as a bonus! :)

That's exactly how I've been viewing is too, Emme. If I don't *need* to eat them, I don't want to because I want the best weight loss results... but since my daily calories are so low, I didn't know if that mattered.

BTW, I was just reading the thread about your weight loss journey and you're amazing! Great job!

Do you feel energized at your workouts? If not, if you feel tired & barely able to get through them you should eat more. If you are fine & have no problems then don't.

Also keep in mind that part of why you're seeing different answers is that different things work for different people. Like the others have said, I don't eat back my calories and stay within my limit so long as I have enough energy and am feeling good. If I'm low on energy or get true hunger pangs, then naturally I will eat (but still stay healthy in what I choose to eat).

And while you may not want to hear this, sometimes our bodies don't lose as the rate we want. You've done an absolutely fantastic job so far and should be proud of your loss! If you lose those remaining 6 pounds, great! If not, don't sweat it. They'll come off eventually. Try taking your measurements as another way of tracking. After all, people will be more likely to notice a 1 inch change in your waist than a 6 pound change over your entire body.

Thanks for your replies!

I do feel pretty energized throughout and after my workouts. I want to lose at a healthy pace, but I'm also impatient because my husband will be coming home in 5 weeks from a 6 month deployment. He left one week after I had our daughter, so I really want to wow him. :) I will continue doing what I'm doing and if it doesn't work, I'll switch things up.

i dont eat my work out calories too! I think of working out as my bonus for days when i do over-eat a little bit more. i guess its also good to have a "buffer" for emotional and stress days! Or TOM!!

Wow!! that was my 200th post!!! :) sorry. i got soo egg-cited when i saw that i had to post again!! :) thanks for all the encouragement and support everyone!!!

I eat part of my exercise calories. Frankly, I do that to give me extra motivation to exercise on days I might otherwise choose to skip it. I earn the calories for a healthy treat (e.g. NF yogurt & berries) by exercise.

Thank you! I'll continue to do what I'm doing unless I start to feel truly hungry. It's worked well so far, so why mess with a good thing, right? :)